Memory of a Vampire
by Falcon Strife
Summary: -Oneshot- When Tamao convinces him to take her to a vampire movie, Ryu finds himself thinking about Boris and the things he felt in the presence of a 'vampire'.


**Title**: Memory of a Vampire  
**Rating**: T**  
Genre**: General, Suspense**  
Summary**: When Tamao convinces him to take her to a vampire movie, Ryu finds himself thinking about Boris and the things he felt in the presence of a 'vampire'. Non-Yaoi Oneshot**  
Disclaimer**: "Shaman King" © Hiroyuki Takei. "Dracula" © Bram Stoker.**  
A/n**: This is based on the anime version of when Ryu & co. met Boris. It was amazing how different the manga is from the anime.

* * *

Tamao glanced around nervously, not used to being outside of Funbari Onsen after seven in the evening. For almost three months Ryu had been trying to convince her to go on a date, and finally she had to give in. Of course, she had a little help from some of the 'cool' girls, who had been teasing her for being such a Daddy's girl, but a strict promise from Ryu that they could still just be friends if she wasn't interested was certainly encouraging. Still, she didn't like that whatever movie they chose wouldn't finish until after 9:00.

"Hey, if anybody tries something, you've got me to protect you," Ryu laughed when he felt her grip tighten.

"But... What if there's a bunch of them?"

He looked at her with a grin. "Tokagero's close by. I'll be fine for fighting, and you'll be safe from harm."

She blushed when he pulled his arm away and wrapped it around her shoulder, and then looked up anxiously. "Um... I don't know what I want to see."

Ryu frowned while looking up at the list of movies that was posted outside of the theater, and then shrugged. "Well, about the only thing I see is Bitter Sweet."

She peered at the list for a moment, and then looked up with a frown. "But... That's just another cheesy romance, Ryu."

"Well we could always see Bloody Fists," he joked. "Lotsa blood and fighting. You don't like that stuff, though. And Godzilla vs. Gigan is pretty old. It'd be cheesier than the romance. Limburger cheese, you know?"

She frowned thoughtfully while going over the list. He was definitely right. Most of the movies were either too cheesy or too violent; however, the last movie on the list brightened her mood. "Ryu-san, let's see that," she said while pointing to the bottom of the list.

"Hmm?" He quirked an eyebrow while reading the title, and then laughed nervously while looking to her. "Bram Stoker's Dracula? Honey, isn't that, like, a little scarey?"

She glanced up to him curiously for a moment, and then smiled nervously. "It isn't too scarey, and I haven't seen it in quite a while."

"Yes, but, what if this contains, like, never-before-seen stuff? Like, really scarey stuff? And that guy, Hellsing... He used to give me the creeps. How do you know it won't do the same to you?"

Tamao smiled a little more while grasping his hand. "Please, Ryu-san? Please?"

Ryu stared down at her quietly for a moment, and then sighed. "Okay. Don't say I didn't warn you." He wrapped his arm around her shoulders again and walked her into the theater, glancing around cautiously. He hadn't been in a theater in quite some time. Quite some time, as in, days before he met Chocolove. It wasn't that he was afraid to go to them; he just didn't think it was safe to go into big, dark rooms where anybody could pop up with any kind of intention. And like his caution towards theaters, he had given up vampire movies, shows and books. Once again, he wasn't scared; he just didn't need a reminder of what a vampire could do; say, bite you, manipulate you, make you an undead servant.

Okay. Maybe he was a little wary. After all, who wouldn't be if they got jumped and bit by a vampire while at the movies? It of course doesn't help when the movie you're watching is about vampires.

"Ryu-san?"

Ryu blinked, and then looked down with a blank expression. "Uh... Yeah?"

"You zoned out," she said quietly, and then pointed to the woman behind the concession bar, who looked rather annoyed.

"That will be ¥650, please," she said impatiently, and then pointed to the line of women behind him who looked just as agitated.

"Oh... Sorry!" he laughed nervously while searching his pockets frantically for the money. Once he had paid the woman, he gathered the popcorn and drinks awkwardly, and then let Tamao lead him to the theater. He managed to make it to the seats with only three stumbles, and then settled into his seat after allowing her to choose hers. He glanced around again while handing her drink to her, and then glanced over his shoulder. "We're the only ones here," he muttered, and then looked to her. "You sure you feel alright? I mean... If you're uncomfortable, we can go home."

"Why would I be uncomfortable?" she asked innocently, her face red. "I... I kinda like it. There won't be disruptions, so we can watch the movie."

His eye twitched slightly, and then with a sigh he looked ahead. "Well, alright."

Tamao glanced up at him for a moment, and then looked ahead. _"Ryu-san is so shy... It's kinda... cute."_

The older teen stared ahead as the lights began to turn off, and then he swallowed nervously while glancing around. Why couldn't more people be interested in the classics? He glanced around to find potential exits, and then sighed while looking ahead, realizing just how paranoid he was acting now. He wriggled into a comfortable position, and then looked back to Tamao. What better way was there to take your mind off of vampires than to stare at the pretty face of your crush? Of course that turned into a bomb when he started having fluffy vampire fantasies, and he quickly whipped his attention back to the screen. He decided he would have to punish himself with extra training for those little thoughts.

However, as the movie proceeded, he found himself thinking again. Movies always glamorized the sexuality of a vampire, and in his experience, that glamorization hadn't been far off. He glanced back to Tamao for a moment, and then turned bright red while looking away quickly. He could certainly remember what it felt like when one of Hao's followers approached him.

His name was Boris; the descendent of Vlad Tepes, also known as Dracula. His family had been killed by vampire hunters, and the experience had been enough to make him believe that he really was a vampire. And he was quite convincing, at that. He used the spirit of the very man who killed his family to control those he bit. Perhaps he wasn't a genuine vampire, but he was close enough.

The teen sighed some, and then suddenly felt alert. He glanced around the theater, sat up straight, and then looked around again. For a moment he could have sworn he felt something warm against his neck. Warm as the breath of another; but nobody was there. Only him and Tamao.

"Oh..." Tamao whimpered as Lucy reappeared on the screen as the Lady in White. She grasped Ryu's arm tightly, and then hid her face before she could see Lucy's demise.

"I told you," Ryu said with a small smile, but rubbed her back lightly. Once the scene was over, he told her so, and then fell back into thought.

Those moments with Boris had been odd, actually. The movie had been growing predictable, and with that he was becoming bored. Boris's voice was haunting, though. At first he didn't realize it was another person talking to him, but then that voice -full of bloodlust and tinted so strangely with sexuality- took hold of his soul in an icy grip. He had to take a sharp breath to catch up with his suddenly racing heart. It was as though while in the bath house, somebody dropped a pail of icy water over him.

"Ryu? Are you okay?"

Ryu blinked, and then glanced down at her with a sheepish grin. "Yeah. Why?"

She looked up at him curiously for a moment, and then smiled while looking to the arm that was wrapped firmly around her. "Nothing..." she said quietly, and then leaned against him while looking back to the screen.

Ryu stared for a moment, wondering when he had begun to hold her, and then glanced up. Okay, maybe he was being a little more that paranoid.

It was hard not to be a little anxious, though. That voice echoed in his mind. _"Vampires don't exist,"_ it mocked in his mind. He shook his head lightly, and then glanced around for any shadows or silhouettes that didn't belong. Tokagero was the only new thing he could see. The bandit had managed to get over his fear of vampire movies, and thankfully he didn't seem to sense Ryu's distress.

He sighed while looking ahead, and then frowned thoughtfully. The eyes of the vampiric shaman had been as intense as his voice. That same hunger rest within them, along with hate and many other emotions. The combination was somewhat hypnotic. Perhaps that was why he didn't run when Boris's intentions became clear. He knew that he was in danger, but those eyes demanded undivided attention. It seemed even thinking about them demanded that attention.

He was pulled out of his thoughts again when he felt Tamao moving. He stared down at her with a stunned expression, wondering if he was really lucky enough to have her snuggling against him. By now she seemed enthralled in the bizarre romance of Mina drinking from Dracula's chest. He smiled slightly, and then leaned his head against hers lightly.

He couldn't quite blame her. There was a strange romance that came with embracement. Even he had to admit that it was alluring. He drifted into reminisce yet again, remembering how the icy grip of Boris's voice melted to the unnerving hunger in his eyes, and finally into the irresistible embrace. It was a strange feeling, like delusion. Everything had felt soft and glowy. The warm breath at his neck; the comforting strength of the embrace; even the low voice that swelled like a wave. He doubted even Ren could have resisted such a strange, wonderful feeling. Even that moment of realization, when teeth reminded him he was in danger, the feeling of belonging to a vampire for that single moment was nearly impossible to describe. It was as though Boris had been able to quench a strange hunger that he never even knew existed. He could only theorize that it was a deeply buried need to be helpless after so many years of being strong.

He blinked, and then looked down at Tamao curiously when he felt her shaking lightly. When he realized the movie was almost over, he gave himself a mental slap for zoning out through most of the movie, and then began to rub her arm when he realized she was crying. Not that he couldn't blame her. He had always cried at the end when he was younger.

Tamao glanced up, smiled weakly, and then wiped under his eyes lightly. "R-Ryu... You're so sensitive..."

Ryu blinked, and then cursed silently when he realized she had been wiping tears. "Aw... Don't tell anybody," he said quietly, and then stood up and began leading her towards the exit. Before long they were walking back towards. He thought about why he had started crying, and then sighed. He could understand Mina's pain. It had been hard when Boris died. Perhaps it was the whole 'belonging' factor again, but whatever it had been, he had been strangely sad.

Tamao glanced up slightly at Ryu for a moment, and then huddled closer to him. "Ryu-san... What's on your mind?"

He blinked and glanced down at her. "Hmm? What do you mean?"

"You've been distracted since we got to the theater," she replied. "You were acting kind of funny..."

Ryu looked at her with a stunned expression, and then smiled while holding her close. "Just thinking about stuff."

"Oh..." she replied quietly. "I'm sorry if it was boring..."

"Boring? Nah," he replied with a grin. "Just remembering some stuff." Silence fell between the two again, but it wasn't uncomfortable. He thought about that evening he met a vampire, and then glanced down at Tamao with a small smile. In fact it was three years since that evening, and for the first time since he could think of vampires comfortably. He only wondered now if Tamao also found the vampire legend romantic.


End file.
